We TEST the BATTERY for BOONDOCKING!

Spring is here and we have finally begun our boondocking experiment. In todays video, we test the battery to see how it performs under 4 different tests. We are not solar or battery experts so we have been learning and researching as much as we can! And to that, this is our experience with our battery and we recommend doing your own tests as well as you get to know your own rig. There are many different campers, batteries and usage so no results will be the same! Ok, so what is our battery? It is a DEKA DP24 flooded lead acid battery. Per the specs @20 hrs it is 65AH. In doing our research, the @20hrs means that the battery discharged slowly over 20 hrs will provide 65AH. But, depending on how you use it and what is being run inside the camper, it may be less efficient. So it is always good to read up, watch some videos and get to know your battery! Here is the detail and results for each of our four tests. First, we didn't include the use of the awning, slide or tongue jack as the impact would have been minimal and quickly recovered by the solar. And second, on the items we are running in the camper (lights, tv, fan...), we are using approx average amps / hour used from the research we discussed in the video for these items: Test #1 - Overnight. Fridge and the standard displays were on (radio, propane detector...). - approx .5 amps per hour over an 8 hour run = 4 amps used. Results - we lost approx 6% of the battery - 6% x 65 AH = 4 so this makes sense Test #2 - 24 Hours on a Sunny Day We had a nice sunny day, we were gone until 3 pm and the amps coming in easily kept up with the items we were running which were the fridge and the displays. At 3 pm until 6 pm, we ran vent fan on low (1 amp x 3 hours ) + one light (.20 x 3) and charged one cell phone (1.5 x3) + normal .5 amps from fridge & misc (.5 x 3). Only 1 amp per hour was coming in during those 3 hours. = approx net 7 amps (6.6) used at 6 pm until 10 pm, we ran 3 lights (.20 x 3 x 4) + tv for one hour (3 x 1) + charged two cell phones / ipad (1.5 x 2 (2 USB plugs) x 4) + normal .5 amps (.5 x 4) = approx 19 amps (19.4) Overnight - again approx 4 amps would have been used. Results - we lost 47% of the battery between 3 pm at 100% and 7 am at 53%. 47% x 65 AH = 31 Adding up our amps used above - 7 + 19 + 4 = 30 so again tracking. Test #3 - Rainy and Overcast We only got 6 hours from the battery today. We were in the camper all day so we were using lights, charging items and we finally sanitized the water tanks to get ready for boondocking without water hookups. From 12 pm to 6 pm we ran 3 lights (.20 x 3 x 4) + tv for one hour (3 x 1) + charging cell phones, cameras or ipad as we were using them for work (1.5 x 2 x 6) + normal .5 amps (.5 x 6) = approx 27.4 but we were getting approx .5 coming in so net = 23 amps used Results - we lost 37% of the battery (90% when we cut off electric to 53% at 6 pm). 37% x 65 AH = 24 which again is tracking Test #4 - Sunny but more items running We turned the battery on at 9 am and ran quite a few items before returning at 2 pm. For those 5 hours we ran 8 lights (.2 x 8 x 5) + tv (3 x 5) + bath vent fan (1.5 x 5) + heater - not sure how long it ran but it was chilly until about 10 am so using 1 hour (6 x 1) + normal (.5 x 5) = 39 but 5 amps were coming in when we returned (5 x 5) so = 14 net Results - battery was at 90% so 10% x 65 AH = 6.5. So this one didn't track - we would have expected the battery to be lower (appro 80%). It is possible that the heater didn't run for an hour and there may have been more amps coming in then when we returned. The next part of the day was from 3 pm to 7 pm. We kept running 5 lights (.2 x 5 x 4) + tv (3 x 4). We did turn the vent fan off as it was getting colder but didn't run the heat. Charged one iphone (1.5 x 4) + normal (.5 x 4) less a few amps still coming in during this time = 22 net Results - we lost 28% of the battery (90% at 3 pm to 62% at 7). 28% x 65 AH = 18 which is again a little less than what we would have expected but there again may have been a few more amps coming in than we noticed. So - overall we really enjoyed this experiment. We have a much better idea of how the battery changes during the day and we are excited to move to the next test! Our next test will be going out again but this time bringing the side panel. Lastly - the link for the Hot Logic Mini. https://www.amazon.com/Hot-Logic-Mini... If you have any questions please feel free to reach out in the comments and as always - thanks for watching and safe travels!! *This video is for entertainment purposes only as we are not RV experts. We are sharing our thoughts and ideas based on our experiences but we always recommend doing your own research and coming to your own conclusions on your camping and RV needs!